Ukraine: Several border villages see fighting with Donetsk situation ‘especially tense’, says Zelenskiy

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address that battles were ongoing at seven border villages in the northeastern region of Kharkiv on Saturday and called the situation in the southern Donetsk region “especially tense”.

“Our defensive operations continue in the Kharkiv region, in the area of the villages of Strilecha, Krasne, Morokhovets, Oliynykovo, Lukiantsi, Hatyshche and Pletenivka,” he said. “Also, the situation in Donetsk remains especially tense, in particular the Pokrovsky direction,” he added.

Earlier on Saturday, Russia said its forces had taken five border villages in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region, where Russia launched an offensive on Friday, exploiting its increasing advantage on the battlefields of eastern Ukraine.

In its briefing on Saturday, the ministry for defence said that Russian forces had taken the villages of Pletenivka, Ohirtseve, Borysivka, Pylna and Strilechna, all of which are directly on the Russian border.

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The briefing also said that Russian troops had taken the village of Keramik in the Donetsk region further south, where Moscow has made slow but steady advances since seizing the long-time Ukrainian stronghold of Avdiivka in February.

Ukrainian officials said on Friday that Russia had launched a new cross-border offensive against Kharkiv region, which is centred around Kharkiv city, Ukraine's second largest.

Russia kept up its attacks in the Kharkiv region on Saturday and was trying to advance further, Kharkiv governor Oleh Syniehubov said.

“As of now the enemy keeps pressing in the north of our region. Our forces have repelled nine attacks,” Mr Syniehubov told a media briefing.

Despite Russia claiming five villages in the region, Mr Syniehubov said clashes were ongoing in all five villages

Ukrainian military said reinforcements were sent to the region to help stabilise positions and limit Russia’s advances after it launched its new offensive on Friday.

Artillery, mortar and aerial bombardments hit more than 30 different towns and villages on Friday, leaving at least three people dead and five others injured, according to Mr Syniehubov.

Mr Syniehubov said regional authorities had evacuated more than 2,500 people from the frontier area and that process continued.

Top Ukrainian officials have repeatedly said they do not believe Russia has the capacity to launch a successful operation to capture the city of Kharkiv, home to 1.3 million people..

Russian forces first attacked Kharkiv region in February 2022, but were routed from most of the province by a lightning Ukrainian counter-offensive in September of that year.

Russia's neighbouring Belgorod region has since come under regular Ukrainian drone and artillery strikes.

Asked in March whether Russian forces might need to take Kharkiv region, Russian president Vladimir Putin said that the only way to secure Russian territory from Ukrainian strikes was to create a buffer zone that would place Moscow’s territory out of range of Kyiv’s forces.

Russia controls about 18 per cent of Ukraine – in the east and south – and has been gaining ground since the failure of Kyiv’s 2023 counter-offensive to make any serious inroads against well dug-in Russian troops. – Reuters/AP